MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Purchased by Procyon Advisors LLC

Procyon Advisors LLC raised its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,182 shares during the quarter. Procyon Advisors LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 11.4% during the first quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 17,847 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,260,000 after buying an additional 1,829 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the first quarter valued at $225,000. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 179.7% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 540,081 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,957,000 after purchasing an additional 346,999 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 937.3% during the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 5,861 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $412,000 after purchasing an additional 5,296 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its position in MetLife by 114.5% during the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 3,419 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 1,825 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE MET traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $74.24. 206,658 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,737,170. The company has a market capitalization of $53.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $48.95 and a 52-week high of $74.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $69.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.82.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.07 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 19.48%. Equities research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 6th were issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 113.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on MET shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of MetLife from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. UBS Group dropped their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on MetLife from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on MetLife from $79.00 to $77.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $77.23.

Insider Transactions at MetLife

In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of MetLife stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total transaction of $289,469.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of MetLife stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc, a financial services company, provides insurance, annuities, employee benefits, and asset management services worldwide. It operates through six segments: Retirement and Income Solutions; Group Benefits; Asia; Latin America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and MetLife Holdings. The company offers life, dental, group short-and long-term disability, individual disability, pet insurance, accidental death and dismemberment, vision, and accident and health coverages, as well as prepaid legal plans; administrative services-only arrangements to employers; and general and separate account, and synthetic guaranteed interest contracts, as well as private floating rate funding agreements.